Title: Logan Returns: Box of Twenty
Author: Sare Liz, TeknoVamp@...
Rating: [L/R], PG, which is amazing considering it's first
person Logan.
Summary: Logan muses on life at the mansion.
Disclaimer: They belong to Marvel and their creditors.

Author's Note: Okay. So. Here's the thing. This was
originally around part� ten or twelve of 'Logan Returns'.
And then part eight happened, and pretty much everything
after that had to be rewritten. That would be about� 15
pages, wasted. So. Instead of crying over f*cked up fic,
I'm making the best of it and getting a little closure on
these last parts. If you don't like it, I don't wanna
know, I'm fragile. If you do, I'd love to hear about it,
thank you very much. So. The point: There's a certain
amount of continuity between these next fics I'm posting
and the beginning parts of 'Logan Returns', but that's
where it ends. If you're confused, email me.

*

It was weird being here. Jean, Ororo, Scott � they all
knew why, and when September rolled around it was sort of
understood that I�d be teaching too. I don�t know if
that�s Xavier�s idea of cover � �No Marie, I didn�t come
back just for you, I came back for me too. See? I�m, uh�
teaching here.� � or if he was just doing his damnedest to
integrate me into his little world.

Either way, I got my theories.

But that wasn�t the weirdest thing. There was other stuff
and plenty of it.

Bobby � that little friend of Marie�s � marshalling up all
his nerve one day to come up and ask me for advice about
women. When I looked at him for the daft child he was, he
pointed out that I�d nabbed Rogue who was the hardest catch
of all, so I must know something, and wouldn�t I share?
Because he was her friend and not annoying her with
unwanted affection, I stomped on the part of me that was
about to tell him to wait a couple of years until he�d
grown a pair and then try again. I settled with a shrug
and a grunt which must have been enough for him, cause he
was gone by the time I�d finished spearing an out of reach
banana and two strawberries on a claw.

Marie, deciding that one day she was going to speak only
Japanese to me, just because she could. I thought she was
completely insane until I realized I understood what she
was saying. She just grinned at me and kept babbling. She
wouldn�t respond to things I said unless I said them in
Japanese. It was the craziest morning of my remembered
existence. After a few stumbling attempts though, I have
to admit it was nice. It�s amazing how many laser-brained
insults you can come up with when you have a whole other
language to use. Her friends thought it was �so cute�,
though. That could ruin the image.

And I should have realized with all the stupid names around
this place, I mean, come on � Cyclops? I should have not
even thought about �The Danger Room�. I mean, who would
call a room of illusions The Danger Room? Then Xavier
kicked it up a notch, and I got the hint. But still,
that�d be like calling Cerebro �The Big Brain Room�. I can
hear it now. �Professor, Professor, we can�t find Scott!
We think he might be shaving � he could be in great danger!
You�ve got to find him � quick, to The Big Brain Room!�
Just doesn�t have the same effect.

But even with all that, there was one thing that beat all.
The box of twenty.

I�m wandering around my room the second day back, putting
my meager stash of clothes away in various drawers when I
hit a few that are full already. Three hooded sweatshirts,
matching sweatpants. Half a dozen pairs of white socks,
running shoes. My size. Four pairs of jeans in the next
drawer, my size, with a handful of undershirts under four
flannels.

I shut the drawer with a snap cause it had all began to wig
me, fierce. I mean, I knew Xavier called me back, and for
a reason, but this bespoke at least a little bit of
foresight.

Or maybe he just knew I was coming back eventually. But
this also reeked of permanence. Not that I wasn�t now
thinking in the long term, it just bothered me that Xavier
knew about it before I did, psychic or not.

All the same, I couldn�t help but wonder if there was
anything else. All this free shit � it was like Christmas,
and it had been a very long time since I�d had a Christmas,
I was sure.

The next drawer was empty, save a laundry schedule taped to
the bottom, and I emptied the rest of my pack into it, then
thought better and folded everything.

Starting back at the top on the other side there were three
t-shirts with the school logo on them, just like the
sweatshirts, matching sweat shorts, and underwear still in
the package. Out of the next drawer I picked a pair of
impossibly soft, thin, black leather gloves. They seemed
familiar somehow and when I slipped them on, I knew. I�d
dreamed them. I dreamed of touching Marie with something
other than my thick riding gloves, something thinner, more
like her opera gloves, but with the soft feel of leather.
But I didn�t have any and I�d never seen a pair. Until
now.

Part of me really didn�t want to think of what Xavier had
seen. Most of me wanted to know what else was in the
drawer.

A body suit. Two, actually. One black and opaque, one
white and as transparent as the scarf. And underneath
everything was more of that smooth gauzy material, gads of
it, just waiting to separate us as we sleep.

The last drawer was empty.

I laughed, folding everything up nice and neat and putting
it back in the fun drawer. Xavier hadn�t said it in so
many words at breakfast, but this� One-Eye�d shit a brick
dog house fully formed for me to inhabit. Xavier had
provided everything but the condoms.

That�s when I thought to check the night table drawer.

Bingo. Box of twenty.

Yea, it�s weird here, but I could get used to it.

***

Hmmm... Feedback? Please? I hate to beg, but Logan's been
bugging the hell out of me lately to get back on the fic
wagon and, ykno... I need the encouragement. -Sare

=====
"It's actually been a beautiful day. A lot of people who could make your life difficult decided not to." -Bono

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